Hard Stuff -

Hard Stuff were an English hard-rock trio from London that released two albums on Deep Purple‘s EMI-imprint Purple Records during 1972 and 1973. The band initially cut a single as Bullet and briefly gigged as Daemon; archival releases from both iterations would surface on compact disc during the 2000s.

Members: John Du Cann (guitar, vocals), John Gustafson (bass, vocals), Paul Hammond (drums)

Guitarist John Du Cann played in The Attack and Andromeda during the late 1960s and featured on the 1970/71 Atomic Rooster albums Death Walks Behind You and In Hearing of. He rejoined the band for their 1980 self-titled album and its 1983 followup Headline News. Hard Stuff drummer Paul Hammond accompanied Du Cann through both stints in Rooster.

Bassist John Gustafson was part of the earlier hard-rock trio Quatermass. Between 1973 and 1975, he became the longest-lasting bassist for Roxy Music, appearing on the albums Stranded, Country Life, and Siren. The period also found his name on assorted Swedish jazz-rock recordings (Ablution, Janne Schaffer) and further appearances back home on albums by Ann Odell (A Little Taste) and Steve Hackett (Voyage of the Acolyte). He then joined the Ian Gillan Band for a three-album stint during 1976 and 1977; a venture that marked the second pairing between the Episode Six alumni.